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[flamekthunder]

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[starshower]

[She tries not to move too much when he says her name, only bringing herself back far enough that she can get a better, more proper look at him, her hands coming to hold both sides of his face. They are still a touch cold, but far better than what they had been just hours ago.]

I'm here. What is it?

[flamekthunder]

No...

[A small sigh as he leans into her hands.]

I'm sorry... For scaring you...

[starshower]

You—

[Didn't, is what she means to say, but they both know that is far from the truth. Heck, she's still scared now that she might hurt him if she even tries to warm her hands or his, or if those starflowers that surround them bloom any further than they have already tried.

So she takes a small breath and presses her forehead to his.]

You didn't mean to, it's okay. [He'll feel her clutch his face just a little tighter.] I'm sorry for hurting you...

[Something she'll probably never forgive herself for, even when they are long past this.]

[flamekthunder]

[A small shake of his head.]

You couldn't have known... What happened was... Different.

[starshower]

We don't have to talk about it right now...

[She leans in, looking like she is about to kiss him—and she is—but she hesitates, that longing and doubt both swirling in her sleepy eyes.]

[flamekthunder]

No.

[Well.

Yes he wants that kiss, but he feels he should say this before he forgets.

Or if it happens again.

So he places his hands on her shoulders to keep her back.]

What happened...

The reason why your dreamotion worked against me...is because of the nightmare energy I had absorbed from the Ice Queen, I think.

[Here he hesitates, since he's not completely certain, but it's the only thing that makes sense.]

Usually you help keep things balanced and it doesn't hurt... But this was as if I was experiencing a negative reaction...

[His eyes harden as he looks at her.]

Like how we use dreamotion to fight against noctaere.

[starshower]

[...

Something shifts in Tifa's demeanour, her own eyes hardening, a shadow coming over them. Lips press firmly and her brows draw together in thought, and slowly, she pushes herself up to sit beside him, her hair falling away from her face. There's a new fear in her expression, or maybe it never left, she doesn't know, but it's there, clear as day, as she stares down at him in horrified disbelief.]

... What do you mean, against noctaere?

[The words come out strained against that horrible lump that's grown in her throat, and the dread that settles in the pit of her stomach.

She sounds almost angry that he could even be insinuating such a thing.]

[flamekthunder]

I'm not sure... How to explain this.

[He sighs as he rubs his brow.]

It was as if a different kind of energy was trying to take over me. Something not my own.

[starshower]

... What?

[That doesn't make her feel any better, and she moves so that she's leaning over him, her fingers running into his hair.]

Like... the Ice Queen's?

[flamekthunder]

That's what I assume. I haven't had direct contact with any others.

[starshower]

[...

She slowly comes back down to lie beside him, that distance that's there far too wide for her liking, and her arm slides over and around his shoulder, her cold body coming right up against his.]

But you don't think that you're turning into...?

[She can't even bring herself to say it, her lip catching under her teeth as she bites back the word she doesn't dare breathe life into, lest it be true.]

[flamekthunder]

No.

[A firm shake of his head as he wraps his arms around her, the cold temperature of her body bothering him.]

...But if I hadn't been able to control it, I might have.

[starshower]

[He'll feel her stiffen then.]

... Is that... what was happening with your arm?

[She moves her eyes, gaze following her fingers as they trace over the lines of his shoulder, images of that blackened ice and the lightning trying to consume it overlapping with what it is now.]

[flamekthunder]

[A nod.]

It was... And I had to use my own to push it back.

[starshower]

[Her hand slides over his shoulder and to his chest where she presses her palm to his skin, firmly, as if seeking the heartbeat that she should know is there... but there's that small part of her that looks for it anyway.]

When you say push it back...

[Slowly, Tifa's eyes move up to meet his again, and they spark with worry.]

... Does that mean it's still there? Inside you?

[flamekthunder]

[And she will find it, beating strong as ever. But he hesitates before he shakes his head.]

I don't know. I think I managed to take it as my own, but... I really don't know.

[starshower]

Are you sure that was a good idea?

[She's not saying she doesn't trust him to know what he's doing with it, but... she can't help listen to those little pangs of doubt that ring loud in her head.]

I could have helped... I should have taken some...

[flamekthunder]

And spread it to you?

[He can't fault her for the idea, but there's a hard look in his eye.]

I could barely control it and I have experience. What would happen if it tried to overwhelm you?

[starshower]

I don't know... Fight it together?

[She sounds and looks defeated under that stare he fixes her with because she knows he's right.]

That was too much for even you... and there was nothing I could do about it...

[flamekthunder]

If you had more experience and control with nightmare energy, then we could. Using dreamotion like we normally do would have only backfired.

[Like it unfortunately did.]

It doesn't help that I was also caught off guard... I don't know if anyone else had this experience, either.

[starshower]

[...

She drops her gaze again, down to his chest where her hand caresses gentle circles over where she feels his heartbeat, still as strong as ever.]

So... what do we do now?

[Wallowing in the what-could-have-beens is not going to get them anywhere.]

[flamekthunder]

...For now... We wait and hope things have settled. After that...

[A small sigh.]

I don't know. Maybe I should see if they can run some tests on me.

[starshower]

[Her stomach turns at the idea of that. She had liked their little life they'd been living up until recently... and now here they are, talking about tests being done on him to check his levels of nightmare energy. It's not exactly the sort of thing she wanted to hear, even if he might be right.]

You should, yeah...

[Her voice goes quiet and small.]

... And what can I do for you?

[flamekthunder]

[He looks at her with regret and guilt for what he had put her through, and for making her feel so helpless right now.]

Just stay right here...and I could use your flames now.

[starshower]

[Another breath she doesn't realize she'd been holding in her lungs falls out of her in a single exhale, and Tifa's whole body relaxes against his. It isn't much, that, but it's something... Something that she can do, and wants to do. Just be right here with him, keep him warm, keep the nightmares at bay, and most importantly, keep him safe.]

... I can do that.

[Those starflowers that had struggled to bloom now quiver in some non-existent wind, their petals still struggling, but their glow is not so dim as Tifa brings her hands to press her palms to his chest.]

You're cold.

[But so is she. The whole room is cold.

Her eyes come up to meet his, a silent plea shining in them.]

... Tell me if it's too much, okay?